Violence Increases Psychological Distress Among Women Trafficking Survivors in Ghana
Date
2024
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Abstract
Human trafficking is a crime that is often shaped by violence, particularly for women
who are trafficked. Additionally, trafficking survivors often report severe psychological
distress, though research on the causes of this psychological distress is lacking, as
there is little longitudinal data available on trafficking survivors. Informed by past literature
on the links between violence and mental health among other traumatized
groups of women, we investigate how experiences of violence influence posttraumatic
stress, depression, and suicide ideation among a unique longitudinal sample of 116
labor-trafficked women in Ghana. We find that experiencing sexual violence while
being trafficked is associated with higher levels of both depression and posttraumatic
stress years after the trafficking period ended. This indicates both the long-term
effects of stress and the enduring nature of psychological distress among the
women in this study. Our analytic account of how violent experiences while trafficked
impact mental health over the period of reintegration contributes to the general literature
on violence and mental health among women, as well as to literature on the
health implications of human trafficking.
Description
Research Article
Keywords
sexual violence, labor trafficking, posttraumatic stress, depression